The European markets ended Friday's session with mixed results. Investors were pleased by the solid private sector data from both Germany and the Eurozone at the end of the trading week. However, optimism over the positive data was offset by geopolitical concerns, as tensions between North Korea and the United States flared up again.
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho said his country may consider testing a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and President Donald Trump have also been engaging in a war of word. Kim described Trump's threat to "totally destroy" North Korea as "mentally deranged behavior." Trump responded to Kim's statement with a post on Twitter on Friday, calling the North Korean dictator a "madman."
U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May hinted at the departure from the European Union by March 2019.
"We are moving through a new and critical period in the history of the United Kingdom's relationship with the European Union. The British people have decided to leave the EU and be a global free-trading nation able to chart our own way in the world," May said at a speech in Florence.
The UK membership in the European Union will end on March 29, 2019, she told. Neither the UK nor the EU could implement a new smooth relationship at that point.
May said that it is impossible to have all the advantages of the single market with none of the disadvantages. Hence, a "creative" economic partnership was needed.
The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index advanced 0.05 percent. The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone blue chip stocks increased 0.03 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, added 0.06 percent.
The DAX of Germany dropped 0.06 percent, but the CAC 40 of France rose 0.27 percent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. gained 0.64 percent and the SMI of Switzerland finished higher by 0.03 percent.
In Paris, cosmetics giant L'Oreal rallied 2.46 percent on speculation about the future of the company after billionaire Liliane Bettencourt died at the age of 94.
In London, outsourcing firm Capita lost 1.23 percent as staff represented by trade union Unite has voted in favor of industrial action.
Smiths Group dropped 5.83 percent after the conglomerate reported a fall in underlying full-year revenue.
Telecom company Telia slid 0.34 percent in Stockholm after it agreed to pay a combined total penalty of more than $965 million to resolve charges arising out of a scheme to pay bribes in Uzbekistan.
The eurozone private sector ended the third quarter on a strong note in September, with growth in activity picking up to its highest since May, flash data from IHS Markit showed Friday. The headline composite output index rose unexpectedly to 56.7 in September from 55.7 in August. The expected score was 55.6.
Germany's private sector grew at the fastest pace in almost six-and-a-half years in September, flash data from IHS Markit showed Friday.
The composite output index rose unexpectedly for the consecutive second month in September, to 57.8 from 55.8 in August. This was the highest reading since April 2011. The reading was forecast to fall to 55.7.
France's private sector expanded the most since May 2011, flash data from IHS Markit showed Friday. The composite Purchasing Managers' Index rose unexpectedly to a 76-month high of 57.2 in September. Economists had forecast the index to drop to 55.0 from 55.2 in August.
France's economic growth held steady in the second quarter as previously estimated, latest figures from the statistical office Insee showed Friday. Gross domestic product expanded 0.5 percent sequentially, the same pace of growth as seen in the first quarter. This was in line with the estimate published on August 29.
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Market Analysis
April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.